21 September 2013

As well as last year, I contacted philatelic office of Latvia Post again, they issued the forth issue of new bird series. Here is the first day cover and maxicards shown the two species European Bee-eater and Long-tailed Duck.

The European Bee-eater breeds in southern Europe and in parts of north Africa and western Asia. It is strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, India and Sri Lanka. This species occurs as a spring overshoot north of its range, with occasional breeding in northwest Europe. This species, like other bee-eaters, is a richly-coloured, slender bird. It has brown and yellow upper parts, whilst the wings are green and the beak is black. The Long-tailed Duck is a medium-sized sea duck. It is the only living member of its genus, Clangula; this was formerly used for the goldeneyes, with the Long-tailed Duck being placed in Harelda. An undescribed congener is known from the Middle Miocene Sajóvölgyi Formation of Mátraszõlõs, Hungary. It is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.